Musican's Handbook: Bass

Whether you’re new to the bass, a few years into your evolution as a bass player or a nimble-fingered veteran with decades of experience, we think you’re going to enjoy this guide to the coolest instrument ever invented. This is Musician’s Handbook: Bass and inside you’ll find everything you need to know about starting out your journey with the most powerful, most important, and most respected musical discipline there is – the bass: The solid, reliable pulse at the heart of all music. As editor of Bass Guitar Magazine – the country’s only print publication dedicated solely to the bass guitar and related gear – I’ve consulted long and hard with my team of experts on life at the low end. Our goal with this Handbook has been to distil over…

SECTION 1: BUYER’S GUIDE AND ESSENTIAL INFO Interested in buying a bass guitar, amplifier or effects pedal? Then this is where it all kicks off. Our experts bring you the knowledge you’ll need to equip yourself with the bass arsenal you’ve always dreamed of, no matter what your ability or budget. And because we know you’re aiming high, we also bring you a gallery of the planet’s best basses and a comprehensive history of the coolest instrument in any band... SECTION 2: TUITION This is where the buck stops for anyone interested in the low notes! We bring you a ton of essential beginners’ lessons, along with intermediate and advanced material for those already in the know, compiled by the country’s best-known bass educators. Check the material on our cover disc: it’s intended…

8…THE ANATOMY OF A BASS GUITAR Under the hood of your chosen instrument 10…CHOOSING YOUR FIRST BASS Make the right choices when faced with a range of instruments 16…AMPS GUIDE Looking for the right bass box? Look no further 22…EFFECTS GUIDE Stamp on the right FX unit with our how-to guide 26…STRINGS GUIDE The right strings for you 28…PICKUPS GUIDE Get the magnets you need to do the job 30…ACCESSORIES GUIDE Straps, cables, bags, cases, picks, tuners? We’ve got ’em! 34…BASS ICONS A bevy of beautiful basses 42…THE HISTORY OF BASS Bass expert and author Tony Bacon takes us through 60 years of the low end…

ELECTRIC BASS 1 MACHINE HEADS Also known as tuners or tuning machines, these control the pitch of the strings. Wind the non-ball-end of the string around the machine head, with the end of the string tucked inside each head. Good quality machine heads will turn smoothly and firmly with no sudden jerks. 2 HEADSTOCK The end of the neck opens out into this larger area of wood, containing the machine heads and giving your bass valuable balance. A string tree may also appear on the headstock, guiding the strings from the nut to the machine heads. Headless basses also exist, for examplethose made by Status and Steinberger, and have a lighter feel. 3 NUT Made of plastic or metal – often brass – the nut anchors each string, ensuring that the string spacing and height is…

Choosing your first bass guitar is an exciting prospect – but not one to be rushed. Make sure you’re clear about what you want to achieve, and bear in mind the kind of music you want to play, your goals and every other aspect of your new project. All of these will influence your final choice, so before you spend your hard-earned cash, spend some time doing a little research – it’ll be time well spent. LOOKS AREN’T EVERYTHING It’s usually the case that people starting out will be influenced by which instrument their heroes play, or even by how the instrument looks. This matters. One of the reasons that Leo Fender’s Precision and Jazz bass designs were such a huge success from the start is that they just looked so damn…

1 CHECK STRING CONDITION Ensure that your strings are in good condition, tightly wound around the machine heads and notched securely into the nut. Check that they sit squarely on the bridge saddles or equivalent location at the bottom end, too. 2 CHECK FREQUENCIES If you’re using a real or online tuner to select the correct frequencies, your job is much easier. Begin with the fourth (thickest) string. On a four-string bass this is usually tuned to E; the other strings are tuned to A, D and G. On a five-string bass, tune to B, E, A, D and G, unless you’re using tenor tuning, which is E, A, D, G and C. 3 TUNER FREE? If you’re tuning your bass without a tuner, slap yourself on the back for being old-school and fearless! Who…